Skip to main content

#1 of 26: The Girl Who Stopped Swimming

By
Almost everyone tries to outrun their past or at least part of their past. IN Joshilyn Jackson's The Girl Who Stopped Swimming the main character Laurel has a very unusual past that will not stay dead - literally. She sees ghosts. Specifically of her Uncle Marty who was accidentally killed on a hunting trip with her father, herself and her younger sister Thalia. The book starts with Laurel waking in the middle of the night to see the ghost of her daughter's friend Molly in her bedroom. Molly leads Laurel to her window and Laurel sees a body sunken to the bottom of the pool. Somehow Molly was in their backyard in the middle of the night and because of that Laurel now has to dredge up the past and her family in order to figure out what happened to the girl who stopped swimming.

Usually I will know within the first 5-10 pages if I like a book and if it is worth it to keep reading. With this book the first chapter was all about Laurel seeing Molly's ghost so it caught my attention from the first page. There was a lot of description of people, places and Laurel's past (especially about her Uncle Marty who was the very first ghost she ever saw) that at the time I was reading I thought to be not needed, too much information. However, when I got to the end I realized all of the descriptions and blasts to Laurel's past were needed. The reader needed to understand that this story was not just about the untimely death of a young girl but also a story about finding the truth about yourself and your past through your past because no matter how far or fast you run, your past will always find you.

Jackson does a very nice job of blending the past with the present and not dwelling too much on either one. Many of her fans have said this is one of her weakest works but since I don't have anything to compare it to it was very good in my eyes. It wasn't a blow your mind type book like Pride and Prejudice (say what you will I love Jane Austen) but it was worth my time and it gets the #1 spot in my list of 26 books to read in 2011 and I am very happy with that decision.

My rating for this book will be 3.5 out of 5. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a little mystery, a little family drama, and a little self discovery packed into 300 pages. Enjoy!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Last Song

By
Before I begin this review, I must put a disclaimer. The only way I got through this movie was to look past Miley Cyrus as the lead. With that said, so starts my review. With imagination running out in Hollywood, producers have to look to other forms of entertainment for inspiration. Nicholas Sparks books have always been a very good place with hit movies such as A Walk to Remember, Message in a Bottle, and The Notebook. In 2010, Hollywood made 2 of his books into movies - Dear John and The Last Song starring Miley Cyrus and Greg Kinnear. Before seeing this movie, I made it a point to read  the book so I could compare the two mediums. This story wasn't a typical Sparks novel in the sense of about finding your true love. This is a story about the dysfunctional yet oddly functional relationship between an 18-year old teenage and her estranged father. Roni and her 10 year old brother come to live at their father's house in South Carolina, on the water, for the summer much to ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Don't Lose the Magic: Shadowhunters Season 1

By
The Shadowhunter world is powerful. Not because of magic, steles, demons, or potions but of the emotions tied to every single character.  Cassandra Clare wielded such heartening characters in her books that bringing the world to the big and little screen seemed almost too much.  When the movie came out, it didn’t live up to the hype of many dedicated fans. Now with the show having gone through its 1st season (and the 2nd season on the horizon) the question is the same: can the producers of the show keep Clare’s world in tact and please everyone?  That is a resounding no. When the news first broke that The Mortal Instrument books series would be turned into a television show I was optimistic.  The feature film had a lot of buildup and hype. Unfortunately it did not live up to the majority’s expectations and fell flat when it was released.  I enjoyed it from a movie and entertainment viewpoint but when comparing it to the book it left something to be desired...
Post a Comment
Read more

True Blood Finale

By
It has been a long time since the True Blood made its final bow, or stab depending on which way you look at it. Before I get into the review lets do a little recap. Bill is still on his path to die by Sookie’s fairie light and rid him of his internal struggle that he is destined to die; He believes he is being punished for all of his sins since he was turned a vampire during the Civil War.  Sookie is still struggling to figure out what to do, not sure if she can kill the man she loves. Bill wants Sookie to kill him so she can live her life without vampires and death.  Eric and Pam are working to get rid of the Japanese people and take over New Blood for themselves (which is genius).  In the end, Eric and Pam kill all the Japanese and they are both rich with the New Blood market.  Sookie does come to the conclusion that she wants babies and a real, human life with no vampires and stakes Bill in his own grave that was dug for him when he didn’t return home from t...
Post a Comment
Read more